Safety inner tube for pneumatic tires



L. E. WALK Dec. 31, 1940.

SAFETY INNER TUBE FOR PNEUMATIC TIRES Filed Nov. 25, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet1 Dec. 31, 1940. L. E. WALK SAFETY INNER TUBE FOR PNEUMATIC TIRES 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV. 25, 1938 Patented Dec. 31, 1940 UNITED- STATESSAFETY INN-ERTUBEFORPNEUMATIO TIRES Louis Emil Walk, Drumright, Okla.

Application November 25, 1938, Serial No. 242,352

1 Claim.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in safety innertubes for pneumatic tires.

It is a well known fact that many accidents and Wrecks are caused by thecar striking a rock or other obstacle and being over-turned or thrownfrom the highway, and the primary object of my present invention is toprovide a safety inner tube for pneumatic tires that will absolutelyprevent accidents of this kind. This is accomplished by providing aninner tube that is divided into a plurality of individual aircompartments by transverse or parallel partitions, whereby, in the eventof a blow-out or puncture caused by the tire coming into contact withsome obstacle in its path, only one air compartment Will be affected andthe remaining air compartments and air pressure will be sufficient tocarry the load until a suitable or convenient place is reached forrepairs.

A further object of my invention is to provide a safety inner tube thatwill eliminate the necessity of changing tires on the highway in theevent of a blow-out or puncture, thus saving time, annoyance and labor.

A still further object of my invention is to provide an inner tubeconstruction, whereby the need of carrying the usual spare tire, innertube and extra wheel, is eliminated.

Still another object of my invention is to provide an inner tube of thecharacter specified that is relatively simple and economical inconstruction and highly efficient and durable in use.

With the foregoing and other objects in view that will appear as thenature of my invention is better understood, the same consists in thenovel features of construction, combination and arrangement of partsillustrated in the accompanying drawings and more particularly pointedout in the appended claim.

In the accompanying drawings, which are for illustrative purposes onlyand are therefore not drawn to scale:

Figure l is a side elevation of a safety inner tube for pneumatic tiresdivided into individual air compartments by transverse partitions.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal section.

Figure 3 is an enlarged detail sectional view of the main valve stem,operating lever and associated parts.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary section of a safety inner tube divided intoindividual parallel air compartments which extend entirely around thetire.

Figure 5 is a transverse section, taken on line 55 of Figure/l and theremaining views are details of various features of my invention.

Referring to the drawings for a more particular description of myinvention, and in which drawings like parts are designated by likerefer- 5 ence characters throughout the several views, A designates myimproved safety inner tube, as a whole, which is divided into aplurality (preferably eight) of corresponding separate or individual aircompartments l, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, l and 8, 1 respectively, by thetransverse partitions 9. The cross partitions 9 are preferablyconstructed of two-ply corded rubber to prevent stretching of thepartitions over three inches.

A continuous heavy rubber tube HJ, about onequarter inch in diameter, isembedded in the inner tube next to the rim and conducts air via the mainvalve stem II, which is of the ordinary or conventional type, to andfrom the individual air compartments 1 to 8, respectively.

In carrying out my invention, the individual air compartments areprovided with the quick closing valves [2, which makes it possible toinflate and deflate each compartment. Each valve I2 is suitablyconnected to the steel wire l3, which works in a stationary conduit M,as shown. The conduit [4 is fixed in place by the cross members Marranged in the tube III, or other equivalent means. A valve operatingshaft l5 extends through the main valve stem l I and is formed at itsinner end with an angular crank arm [6 secured, as at [1, to the steelwire I3. The conduit I4 is formed with a slot to facilitate the properattachment and operation of the crank arm aforesaid. The outer end ofthe valve opcrating shaft I5 is preferably flattened, as at I8, and maybe easily engaged and turned to shift the steel wire I3 about one-halfinch to open and close the air valves l2. The body portion of the shaftI5 is held in place by the braces l9 and. 20.

In practice, if a blow-out or puncture occurs in the tire casing and oneof the air compartments of the inner tube, due to the car striliing anobstruction of some kind on the highway, only the particular aircompartment affected will be deflated and the twenty-eight pounds of airremaining in the other compartments will be sufficient to safely carrythe load until a convenient place is reached to make repairs, thussaving time, annoyance and labor of changing tires on the road. Further,and most important of all, my invention provides a safety factor thatwill eliminate the liability of the car being overturned or thrown fromthe highway when a blow-out or puncture occurs, with the usualdisastrous results.

In the form of my invention illustrated in Figures 4 and 5 of thedrawings, the inner tube is divided into six corresponding individualparallel air compartments 2| by the laterally spaced circumferentialpartitions 22. The air compartments 2| extend entirely around the innertube and are provided with the separate valves 23 which are operated bythe master valve 24. A rubber tubing 25 carries air to and from the aircompartments 2| and a steel wire 26 extends through the tubing 25 and isconnected to each of the valves 23, the purpose of which will beapparent.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the drawings, itis thought that the construction, operation and advantages of myinvention will be readily understood, without requiring a more extendedexplanation.

Various changes in the form, proportions and minor details ofconstruction may be resorted to without departing from the principles orsacrificing any of the advantages of my invention as defined in theappended claim.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is: A safety inner tube for pneumatic tires dividedinto a plurality of individual air compartments- LOUIS EMJL WALK.

